Boy Character Analysis

Register to read the introduction…Unlike Dunstan, Boy does not have any religious upbringing and certainly has a very low moral integrity. This is shown by Dunstan’s confrontation about the snowball incident where Boy denies his faults. After Dunny confronts him, he says, “You bet it’s what I think…And it’s what you’d better think too, if you know what’s good for you” (Davies 16). Boy’s immature behaviour to not take responsibility for his actions leads to a path where he is successful, but feels unfulfilled inside. Similar to Dunstan’s commitment to caring for Mrs Dempster, Boy also commits his life to external greatness. He becomes something that he is not, but something that others expect him to be. Boy begins his adulthood by being everything one wants to be: having a good appearance, an immeasurable amount of wealth, and the charisma that can attract anyone. “It was characteristic of Boy throughout his life that he was always the quintessence of something that somebody else had recognized and defined” (Davies 113). He believes that he is in control of every situation, but inside he cannot control his guilt that is still buried deep inside himself. Contrary to Dunstan who feels responsible for problems, Boy runs away from his problems by keeping himself busy. The death of Leola, his wife, clearly shows Boy’s fear of facing problems, for his does not show up for her funeral, “Boy was in England, arranging something or other connected with his Ministry, and duty and the difficulty of transatlantic flights in wartime kept him there”(Davies 194). Boy still yearns for fulfillment even though he achieves greatness in terms of his financial success and his outward appearance. He says, “I feel rotten. I’ve done just about everything I’ve ever planned to do and everybody thinks I’m a success… But sometimes I wish I could get into a car and drive away from the whole damned thing.” (Davies). Boy knows that deep inside…show more content…Boy has no respect for Leola or her feelings and abuses her love for him. He does this by trying to change everything about her, “He was educating Leola, and as I saw them pretty regularly I was able to estimate his success. He wanted to make her into the perfect wife for a rising young entrepreneur” (Davies 124). Boy’s demand for Leola to change reflects Boy’s need to change in order for him to feel accepted in society, “he needed a wife who could help him to graduate from a cherub to a full-fledge angel, and as soon as possible to an archangel”(Davies 125). Boy does not allow Leola to speak her mind because inside Boy also feels that he is bounded by the expectation of the world and wants to be himself instead of the person he turned out to be. Leola reminds Boy of his imperfections and the guilt that still remains inside of him. For this reason Boy knows that he has to escape this relationship in order to feel worthy. The marriage of Boy and Leola ends when Boy leaves Leola for his business ventures. He rarely visits her and he does not attend her funeral. Boy then begins another relationship with Denyse Hornick, a politician, and Dunstan begins to see another side of Boy. Boy is at the mercy of Denyse when he falls in love with her. Denyse manipulates Boy in order for her to have more support as a social activist. She sees that Boy has the potential to become Lieutenant-Governor, and she uses this to her advantage. Through this relationship Boy does not understand himself because Boy’s true nature is buried away when he erases and forgets the guilt that he has and the responsibility comes with it. The failure of both of Boy’s relationships results in the death of Boy himself. He runs away from a situation he is not in control of, and this shows the lasting effect of Boy’s reaction to his

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